Migration: The Sympraxis Approach

Episodes in the Microsoft 365 Migrations Series

  1. What does migration really mean?​
  2. Migration: The Sympraxis Approach

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"Ask Sympraxis" is a bi-weekly webinar series, where we discuss an array of topics and answer your submitted questions. Join us by downloading our recurring calendar event. You can also join us directly in the meeting without downloading the event.

See a listing of Ask Sympraxis episodes by topic covered: Topic List, Series List, or a full listing Archive

Migrating to and within Microsoft 365 can sometimes be a daunting task fraught with challenges, from data integrity to user adoption. That’s where the Sympraxis Approach comes in. This session of Ask Sympraxis digs deeper into migrations, focusing specifically on a redesign approach. If you’d like a broader overview of migrations in general, please visit our prior session What does migration really mean?.

Redesign: Pros and Cons

The consensus is clear: lift and shift approaches are a thing of the past. The redesign methodology offers a chance to rectify past mistakes, leveraging lessons learned to implement better practices and improve platform performance. By splitting the intranet between communication and team sites, organizations can reduce technical debt and align more closely with business needs. However, with pros comes cons and the redesign method requires more effort, testing, and collaboration. Despite the added workload, we believe the benefits far outweigh the challenges.

Fundamental Shift in SharePoint Usage

SharePoint has evolved from a hierarchical structure to a flat site topology, distinguishing between communication and team sites. This shift enables smoother transitions during department reorganizations or splits. This change is key to planning your intranet.

Planning

You need to know what you’re going to do before you do it! Establishing a steering committee comprising of stakeholders is vital for driving the migration process and ensuring effective governance. However, we suggest starting with a thorough content inventory as the first step, enabling informed decision-making regarding platform construction, customization, and workflow integration.

For organizations transitioning from on-prem or classic SharePoint to the modern online environment, certain challenges may arise, particularly concerning branding and custom solutions. Additionally, third-party solutions, InfoPath Forms, and workflows may require alternative approaches for migration and implementation.

Collaboration vs. Communication sites

Understanding where different types of content belong is essential for optimizing the user experience. Communication sites cater to organization-wide information, while team sites foster collaboration within departments.

Building a roadmap

User interviews play a pivotal role in shaping the migration roadmap. By gathering insights from various departments, organizations can refine their information architecture and tailor experiences to meet specific user needs. Tracking user behavior in modern SharePoint allows for data-driven decision-making, driving engagement and efficiency.

Executing the migration

Creating a content inventory of the content in a specific site is an essential start. It helps you align the current metadata and map it to the new information architecture. It also helps in coaching content owners in the new platform as they are critical players in the migration process. We also need to uncover metadata hidden within file names as this information is very valuable. Also, the steering committee must live on past the go-live date. They need to continue to monitor and enhance the intranet moving forward.

By embracing best practices, navigating challenges, and prioritizing user needs during a migration, you can unlock the full potential of your Microsoft 365 environment. If you have any questions about the Sympraxis Approach please reach out to our team!

All Resources

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